Top Dem slams Trump’s ‘outlandish and destructive claims’

Rep. Adam Schiff (Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, slammed President Trump on Saturday over his allegation that former President Obama wiretapped Trump Tower before the election.

“If there is something bad or sick going on, it is the willingness of the nation’s chief executive to make the most outlandish and destructive claims without providing a scintilla of evidence to support them,” Schiff said in a statement on Saturday.

Trump took to Twitter early Saturday morning to accuse his predecessor of ordering the wiretaps, but did not provide any evidence to support the claim.

{mosads}“Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my ‘wires tapped’ in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!” Trump wrote.

“Is it legal for a sitting President to be ‘wire tapping’ a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!” he added in another tweet.

“I’d bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to Election!”

A spokesman for Obama issued a statement denying that Obama’s White House ordered such surveillance. 

“A cardinal rule of the Obama Administration was that no White House official ever interfered with any independent investigation led by the Department of Justice,” said spokesman Kevin Lewis.

“As part of that practice, neither President Obama nor any White House official ever ordered surveillance on any U.S. citizen,” Lewis added. “Any suggestion otherwise is simply false.”

Democratic lawmakers slammed Trump over the tweets, with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) arguing that Trump was attempting to distract from his own scrutiny.

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) said if Trump Tower had been bugged, then it would mean Trump is in trouble.

“Mr. President: If there was a wiretap at Trump Tower, that means a fed judge found probable cause of crime which means you are in deep sh–,” Lieu wrote in response to Trump.

Schiff said Trump’s recent tweets show he will never be a man who understands the Constitution or regards the truth.

“No matter how much we hope and pray that this President will grow into one who respects and understands the Constitution, separation of powers, role of a free press, responsibilities as the leader of the free world, or demonstrates even the most basic regard for the truth, we must now accept that President Trump will never become that man,” he said.